SCI/TECH: UFO Imaged Near Last Picture of Beagle 2

European scientists are pouring over a photograph taken of the ill fated Beagle 2 lander, which was lost, right after it seperated from it's mother craft. The picture shows an unidentified object near the lander, and is being considered as one possible reason the Mars explorer failed.

European scientists said Monday they are examining an image of its Beagle 2 Mars lander, taken moments after it separated from its mothership and later was lost, that also shows an unidentified object.

The mysterious blot on the photograph is being scrutinized as one of several potential reasons for the failure of the mission � Europe's first attempt to land a probe on the Red Planet.

Beagle 2 has not been heard from since it was ejected from the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter in mid-December. The 143-pound probe did not respond to scheduled attempts to contact it on Dec. 25 and has remained silent ever since.

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[Edited on 3-8-2004 by William One Sac]

Has the photograph been released yet. If not, please post it when it is. I'd like to take a lot at it.

I can't wait to see this image. Is there any news on it being released yet?

er... the beagal wasn't lost right after it seperated from the mother craft from what I remember. And yeah a photo would be nice to see...

Didn't I tell you guys all along that Mars was inhabitated by Aliens? No one believed me...until now.

Just Kidding.

That unknown object could be a variety of things, for example, dust, air particles, bad camera, or some big hoax.

hmmm interesting, very interesting...

though it might be just europeans trying to find somebody else, as usual, to blame for the failure
Nothing new on the old continent

Note: I am european, so this is not an insult, this is only humor

i think this is BS a hoxe a froud eta,eta

www.beagle2.com...


..

[Edited on 8-3-2004 by smirkley]

Their explanation of that picture that was posted: The bright spot on the left-hand side of this picture is
the back side of Beagle 2, slowly drifting away from Mars Express. This image, taken this morning (19-Dec-2003) at 9:33 CET, shows the lander when it was about 20 metres away from the mother spacecraft, on its way to Mars.

Is that the real picture?

Originally posted by John Nada
Is that the real picture?

Yes this pic is from to the website, and the link below it takes you there.

www.beagle2.com...

That's really... strange. I wonder what it is.

My first instinct was stars, then I realised that the layout is too unusual for that. There's absolutely nothing on the right side of the image so it can't be stars.

Now I'm convinced they look like ice particles that came off as a result of the probe detaching and have drifted towards the lens, or something else that broke off as it detached.

so what am I missing? I don't see anything!

Yes, I can't see anything either?

J.

Seriously, you don't see anything at all Val and Milton?

See the little sphere at the bottom about two inches from the bottom left corner?

Notice the light playing on this object the same as the Beagle, like it's in the same vicinity?

Probably just some dust lol...

Here's a bit of info you may find helpful. When it came time to put Mars Express into orbit, the ESA found that it wasn't exactly where they thought it was. Of course, they were able to correct the condition, but think of the implications for the loss of the Beagle 2. If the Express wasn't where they thought it was...then it wasn't where they thought it was when they cut the Beagle loose...and therefore the Beagle's planned trajectory would be inaccurate as well. The end result would have been either:

A: Beagle enters Martian atmosphere and fries to a crisp
B: Beagle survives descent, but smashes into itty bitty bits due to preprogrammed descent inconsistencies (parachute timing, etc.)
C: Beagle misses Mars completely and blows right on by, becoming a very expensive small asteroid
D: Beagle does none of the above, going into an unplanned orbit, becoming a very expensive piece of Martian space junk.

If you were the ESA, and realized what had happened, would you tell everyone that you totally scrooged this high-profile mission due to a ghastly navigational error?

I think it's a real shame, I was hoping the little guy would make it. I was up Christmas morning checking for news from the Beagle. I always gotta root for the underdog...
I do wish they could find some sign of the little guy, though. A picture of the wreckage, or something. Note that several different satellites have taken pictures of the target area and found absolutely no trace of anything. Yet another nail in the coffin for my theory on this. This would be consistent.

As for the picture...I'd downloaded this picture from the ESA shortly after it's initial release, and it does seem to be the same. There are several other 'dots' to the right of the Beagle, which would appear to be nothing more than stars, or perhaps debris from separation as Nada suggested. I don't see a UFO conspiracy here, but a good possibility of an ESA coverup.

A very probable theory is that it was just going too fast when it landed. Possibly because they overestimated the density of the atmosphere at the landing site.

"She won't take much more of this captian." -- Scotty



[Edited on 9-3-2004 by dbates]